Five More NOT to Miss Fall Foliage Spots

I know it’s early to be thinking about the fall colors but October will be here soon enough. The fall colors are only here for a short time, and we never know where it’s going to be best. Having a list of “known” scenic spots helps you create backup plans.

So where do you go?

What follows are five “more” tried and true spots that almost always please in autumn. They are all usually good on or about the dates I’ve posted with each one. Click here to see a top 10 list of just Vermont scenic locations, and the previous list of five not to miss fall foliage spots.

1. Height of Land, Maine

If you are heading North, why not head into Maine’s NW corner? To get to Height of Land in Maine, you can either follow Route 16 in New Hampshire, heading East from Gorham to Route 17 and North or if you are already in Maine, head towards Rumford and catch Route 17 from there. (Also, here is a new scenic outlook. just head up the road a mile and you will see a new scenic overlook)

Maine's fall colors in October — This viewpoint is called the height of land. View in my gallery.

I’ve arrived at this spot near Rangeley Maine anywhere from 2 October to 17 October, but 3 October 2013 was my best result. (so far) For those of you who think because I live here in New England, I can just go out my front door and find peak fall foliage. let me restate this… Five different years (out of 17 yrs) have taken me past this “Height of Land” and I have only been really happy once. (although the trip over the 16/17th in 2017 was better but not at this spot. Leave a note in the comments to find out why)

There used to be just a widening in the road so you could pull over, but now there is a parking lot for several cars which is safer. Other than this view of Mooselookmeguntic Lake with a view of Toothaker Island, there is little to photograph. As you head north on Route 17 you could turn right on South Shore Rd which takes you past (or into) Rangeley Lake State Park where they have easy trails to explore. If not there, continue on Route 17 to Route 16 and a right turn to Rangeley. For more on Rangeley Maine, you can read about Rangeley as described in this article. Update: On our trip in 2021, we found a new, second paved parking area with a view of Rangeley Lake on Route 17.

2. Stowe Vermont’s Community Church

I don’t usually recommend Stowe VT since it gets SO much tourist traffic, but two spots there really catch my attention. First, the Stowe Community Church is one of the oldest non-denominational churches in the country. The white church steeple against a hillside of orange, red, and yellow is a crowd-pleaser. But is it the nicest? (Don’t miss the last item on this list!)

stowe church in fall colors — Stowe Vermont Church at Sunset, view in my gallery.

I like to visit this around 10 October, and you can find it by heading north out of Stowe on Route 108. As you head up the hill look back to the right. Read more about finding it in this article.

As for when during the day to photograph it, you need to catch this between 3 and 4:30 PM. Why not later for the golden hour? Normally I would say that later would be better, but the sun drops below the surrounding hills long before the sun hits the horizon and if the church is in shade, it’s not as good (IMHO).

(2.5) Stowe’s Gentle Giant Sleigh & Carriage Rides (Bonus)

My second favorite in the area of Stowe is a wonderful combo of horse-drawn carriages, fall colors, and a covered bridge… Between Stowe and Smuggler’s Notch on Route 108 you will find Stowe’s Gentle Giants Sleigh and Carriage Rides.

Taking a ride through the fall foliage in Stowe Vermont — Stowe’s Gentle Giant sleigh rides. View in my Art Gallery here

I found this by accident one morning when I was coming down from Smuggler’s Notch. There were all these carriages parked on the side of the road, and then I thought I saw a covered bridge. So I whipped it around and parked. I didn’t really see a good image.

Then some people arrived for a scheduled carriage ride on their trails. They got one of the horses hitched up and I was able to catch several nice shots of the horse, buggy, and family heading off through the (not real) covered bridge. I will in the future take Lisa on a ride to see what the other trails look like. You can visit their Facebook page for more details or get their phone number to schedule a ride.

I’ve only shot this once at 9 AM and due to the arrangement of the surrounding hills, I think the morning hours or early afternoon will be the best times. I think the sun will drop below Mount Mansfield to the west long before it gets really good, but try it out and let me know.

3. Sawyer Stone Bridge in New Hampshire

There are more stone bridges than I have found or written about. This is to inspire you to get out there and find some for yourself. The one I picked today is the Sawyer Stone Bridge in Hillsborough, NH. This is also known as the Bridge to Nowhere. It crosses the North Branch River in Hillsborough, but it is for show only.

Sawyer Stone Bridge, also this is also known as the bridge to nowhere. The fall colors reflect under the bridge in bridge orange. View in my gallery.

This bridge will either be very easy or hard to find. Hard because it’s so right-in-your-face, that you may miss it the first 4-6 times you drive by it. Also, to get a shot like this one means you will need the skill and surefootedness of a billy goat. If you HAVE to get this shot because I got it, then I want to warn folks about the vines that can trip you, and the loose rocks that move. If you have to have this image, you can always click the description of the bridge, and that will take you to my Fine Art Gallery to purchase it… much safer.

If you would like to know about the other Stone Bridges in Hillsborough NH then follow this link to an article I wrote about them.

4. Willimantic Connecticut

The Nutmeg State, or Connecticut, is no slouch when it comes to the fall colors and history. First the fall colors. I stopped into Willimantic with a Boston Globe reporter some years back. It was late October, (the 23rd to be exact). We drove around a bit and I had to stop at the Willimantic Town Hall.

The Willimantic Town Hall set against this glorious backdrop of orange maple leaves, and a deep blue sky. View in my gallery.

It was built in 1896 for the housing of the Windham County Courthouse and the Willimantic City Government. The architect was Warren Richard Briggs. Willimantic is known as “Thread City” for the American Thread Company’s mills along the Willimantic River.

One of the more interesting things about Willimantic is that its history isn’t just about the mills making a thread for the nation. I was driving through to head west when I saw a bridge I just HAD to cross and photograph.

Thread City Crossing or Frog Bridge, I had to stop and photograph it. View this in my Gallery.

I fell in love with Frog Bridge (Officially known as Thread City Crossing) from the second I saw it. It was so creative and a great way to capture the two things Willimantic is famous for. The thread spool represents all the mills along the Willimantic River that produced silk and cotton thread up till the end of WWII and the frog is for the Battle of Frog Pond in 1754. The sculptures were designed and created by artist Leo Jensen of Ivoryton, Connecticut.

The design of the bridge relates to the local story of “The Battle of the Frogs”. In 1754, thousands of bullfrogs in Frog Pond, about a mile east of Windham Center, awoke residents with loud croaking sounds. Many people mistook the sound for war drums or shouted words, and feared it was the French or Indians attacking the small town

The timing for these shots was early morning but anytime should be good…

5. Bancroft’s Castle, Groton Massachusetts

Just like “Olde” England, New England has its own share of castles Lisa has written about some of them and you can find one of them here, Maine’s Castles.

Bancroft Castle was started around 1906 by General William Bancroft. He wanted to build it as a gift for his wife and unfortunately, she passed away before it was finished. As it was, he only finished building a stone bungalow and couldn’t get more funding to finish the main house.

In 1918, physician Harold Ayres purchased the bungalow and renovated it into a private sanitarium. It was then used by the Groton Hunt Club during the 1930s for entertainment. During a July 4 fireworks celebration in 1932, the bungalow caught fire – leaving only the exterior stone walls intact.^[4]

Now getting there is a little tricky…

Bancroft Castle is a misnomer as it was built as a summer home on gibbet hill.

Instead of trying to find Bancroft Castle, you need to instead Google for Gibbet Hill Grill. You see, there is no “official” parking for the castle, but the restaurant has set aside parking at the back of their parking lot for people visiting Bancroft. Now, look across the parking lot at the big hill. Yes, you are going to have to climb it. Lucky for you there is a path.

Here is the trick. Head to the right following the barbed wire fence line, and there you will find the path to the top. Once up there, you will find the remains of the castle and as a bonus, you will find an outstanding overlook view.

5.2 Bonus view of Groton Massachusetts

As I said before, there is more to this big hill that you just climbed than the stone castle (NOTE: I stopped 2-3 times before getting to the top to catch my breath). You also have views of a couple of the town’s churches surrounded by fall colors. For those who saw my FB post about the Stowe church and this one, I think they are both very special views…

Union Congregational Church in the town of Groton Massachusetts. View in my gallery.

We could see from the hill a white steeple among the maples. This was the Union Congregational Church which is down in the town of Groton Massachusetts. You can find this scenic overlook by walking along the fence line near the castle. This was one of the prettiest views with all the different colors of maples surrounding the church.

I shot this with my 24-105 telephoto, and even zoomed in, I had to crop a little. So bring a 200mm telephoto with you to work this image. A phone will not do a good job zooming in (even the new ones don’t have great optical zooms yet…)

Late afternoon is a good time to photograph this spot in mid-October. These were between 3 – 3:30 PM, and if there are some light clouds to make the sky interesting, and side lights the trees and church as seen here, you should get outstanding shots.

Well, I squeezed in a few more than just five fall foliage locations, but I don’t think any of you will complain. This takes you from up in Maine and down into Connecticut and back to Massachusetts, giving you lots of different areas to explore and discover your own Not To Miss locations!

Jeff Foliage Folger

Autumn is a state of mind more than a time of year – Jeff Foliage

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